Category: Education

The Student Council of E. M. Rollins Elementary, under the direction of Antoinette Ball, a teacher and Student Council adviser, spearheaded a year-long service project which raised over $3,000. The proceeds were donated to Rise Against Hunger, a non-profit humanitarian relief organization headquartered in Raleigh. The partnership with Rise Against Hunger was the result of students wanting to learn by doing and wanting to demonstrate service leadership. The project ended with the finale of a “Meal Packaging” event on May …

Vance-Granville Community College recognized 41 students who graduated this spring from the Associate Degree Nursing program with a pinning ceremony in the college’s Civic Center on May 10. Among those honored with distinctive nursing pins at the ceremonies were seven who graduated through the LPN to ADN Transition Program, which helps Licensed Practical Nurses to continue their education and then become Registered Nurses. These graduates were Ashley Brooke Jones of Bullock; Brittany Mechel Champion and Martina Usher McKinnon, both of …

Eleven cadets graduated on May 16 from the Basic Law Enforcement Training (BLET) program at Vance-Granville Community College, in a ceremony held in the Civic Center on Main Campus. After passing the state certification exam, all are authorized to work in any law enforcement agency in North Carolina. Graduates of VGCC’s 104th BLET class included Jill Nicole McLean of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office; Spencer Reid Warehime of the Granville County Sheriff’s Office; Shawn Maurice Brown, Jr., of the Henderson …

A total of 48 students in the Class of 2017 graduated on May 26 from the Vance County Early College High School. Their commencement ceremony was held before a packed crowd in the Civic Center at Vance-Granville Community College near Henderson. Kristen Oakes, shown in the third photo at the podium, gave the valedictorian address as the top graduate in the Class of 2017. Oakes will attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the fall. …

Less than one year into his tenure as president of the North Carolina Community College System, Dr. James C. “Jimmie” Williamson addressed some of his system’s newest graduates as the principal speaker at Vance-Granville Community College’s 48th commencement exercises on May 12. Members of the Class of 2017 were joined by numerous loved ones at the outdoor ceremony in front of the gazebo on the college’s Main Campus. While saluting the graduates’ accomplishments thus far, Williamson focused on what …

Vance County Schools held a kick-off event this afternoon for its new Summer E-Reader Program for five local elementary schools. Superintendent Anthony Jackson led the celebratory kickoff which will place 80 new Nook electronic reading devices in the hands of identified students in grades 3-5 at Carver, New Hope, Pinkston Street, Clarke and E.O. Young Jr. elementary schools this summer. The school system purchased the Nooks, which are capable of downloading a large number of books for students to read, from …

The graduation ceremonies for all of the Class of 2017 members in our four high schools begin next Friday, May 26, with the commencement for graduates at the Vance County Early College High School. All four of the high school graduation ceremonies can be viewed live on the school system’s website at www.vcs.k12.nc.us. The Early College commencement will begin at 6 p.m. and will be held in the Civic Center on the campus of Vance-Granville Community College near Henderson. Our …

Louisburg College conferred more than 160 associate degrees May 12 to graduating sophomores, celebrating its largest Commencement in years, lauding students’ achievements and honoring the service of longtime, beloved faculty members. Six students earned 4.0 grade point averages, graduating summa cum laude. Ten graduated magna cum laude, earning grade point averages of 3.8 to 3.99. Twenty-seven earned 3.5 to 3.79, graduating cum laude. Four students graduated with Associate of Science degrees in Business. Eighteen earned Associate of Science degrees in …

Vance-Granville Community College recently partnered with the Epsom Fire Department in northern Franklin County to offer a training program designed to prepare local firefighters for specific emergency situations that may occur on farms. The “Machinery & Agricultural Rescue” course was conducted in March, with instructor David Pease of the R.E.D.S. (Rescue Extrication Delivery Specialists) Team, a group he helped found to provide specialized training. Pease has over 40 years of experience in rescue and emergency medical services. Some 35 firefighters …

Vance County Schools held its second annual “Honoring Academic Success” banquet on Wednesday, May 10, at McGregor Hall in downtown Henderson to honor 48 high school seniors who are the top academic achievers in their respective graduating classes for the 2016-2017 school year. An audience of approximately 225 people attended the banquet which featured entertainment by local students and a nice meal, catered by Cook Shack of Louisburg. Kaitlyn Tant, a junior at Southern Vance High School, and Jadyn Jones, …

Nowell Brooks and Alice Hinson, both assistant principals with Vance County Schools, have successfully completed a year-long participation in the Future-Ready Leadership (FRL) development program for practicing assistant principals. Brooks is an assistant principal at Northern Vance High School and Hinson is the assistant principal at the AdVANCE Academy at Western Vance High School. They are shown in the accompanying photos holding their framed certificates for completion of the program. Both have been administrators in Vance County Schools for several …

Travis Taylor, who has extensive experience as a high school and middle school principal, has been named the new principal at Eaton-Johnson Middle School. Taylor was approved as the school’s new principal by the Vance County Board of Education at its meeting on May 8. He joins Vance County Schools after serving as the principal of Carver High School in Winston-Salem, since 2014. “We are extremely pleased to have Mr. Taylor join our team,” said Dr. Anthony Jackson, superintendent of …

Students who are members of the junior class at the Vance County Early College High School have been selected as graduation marshals to assist in events for the Class of 2017. The 10 junior marshals were honored at a luncheon on April 28 at the school. They were selected as marshals for their outstanding academics.

With the regular season over, the Griffins finished 14-10 overall and 11-1 in conference play, clinching their very first baseball conference championship. The Griffins took another step forward in the young program’s history. Last year, in the first season of varsity play the team finished 12-12 overall and 3rd in the conference. The Griffins will likely earn a 4 seed in the Mideast Pod of the 2017 NCHSAA 1A Baseball Playoffs, where they will host a home playoff game on …

Francis Scotland, Jr., of Oxford, a student in the College Transfer program at Vance-Granville Community College, was recently the college’s nominee for the North Carolina Community College System’s Governor Robert W. Scott Student Leadership Award for 2017. The award was established in 2004 in honor of Scott, who served as Governor of North Carolina from 1969-1973, and as President of the N.C. Community College System from 1983-1995. Each year, the N.C. Association of Community College Presidents bestows the honor on …

The Griffin’s Middle School softball team finished their inaugural season unbeaten. “We are very proud of this team. We go from not being certain if we have enough interest to actually have enough play, to having a history making season,” says Head coach Joe Don Cooper. When Cooper and Assistant coach Eddie Blake opened try outs, they only had 12 young ladies interested in playing. Coach Cooper remarked “this team is an example that overall great attitudes and work ethic …

A total of 17 juniors, who make up the top 10 percent of their class this year at Southern Vance High School, have been selected as graduation marshals for the Class of 2017. The top juniors were honored today at a reception held at the school and attended by their parents and school officials. Those students selected as Southern Vance graduation marshals include: Kailee Ball, Itzy Chavarin, Cody Edwards, Adriana Evans, Cynthia Hernandez, Walter Hernandez, Perla Lopez, Brandon Loyd, Crystal …

Beginning in mid-May state testing will begin in Vance County Schools. N.C. End-of-Course and N.C. Final Exams will be administered to students at the Vance County Early College High School May 16-19 and May 22-25. At the Early College, May 16 and May 17 testing will include Math II, Math III and district testing. May 18 will include testing for seniors and will involve exams that have constructive responses. On May 19, students will take their first-period exams for the …

Joined by an excited group of kindergartners who had just enjoyed a special story time in the East Garner Elementary School media center, NC Superintendent Mark Johnson today announced the state’s NC Reads initiative. The launch of NC Reads will promote three goals for the summer of 2017 to combat the summer brain drain: * collect books, and funds for books, to donate to preschoolers and students for summer reading; * distribute free subscriptions for every student in K-5 to …

A new Tuesday morning painting class will begin at Vance-Granville Community College’s Main Campus on April 25, with a new instructor: artist Stephen Filarsky of Franklinton. “Watercolor & Drawing” is scheduled for Tuesdays from 9:15 a.m. until 12:15 p.m., April 25 through July 18, in room 5223 (Building 5). Filarsky has painted watercolor portraits and landscapes professionally for 25 years but has been an artist since he was in high school. In college, he said he “studied Architectural Engineering and …